In the wake of Friday’s deadly shooting at an elementary school in Newtown, Conn., politicians offered their thoughts and prayers — and some issued new calls for tighter gun control.

Rep. Chris Murphy, who represents the district and was recently elected to the Senate, released a statement: “I am shocked and saddened by the horrific news from Sandy Hook Elementary School this morning, and I pray that kids, teachers, staff and families reach safety as quickly as possible. While we don’t have much information right now, our thoughts are with the victims and their loved ones.”

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Obama: 'Our hearts are broken'

Elizabeth Etsy, who was elected to replace Murphy in the House, also offered her prayers.

“As a mother, I can only begin to imagine what the students, parents, teachers and staff of Sandy Hook Elementary must be experiencing,” she said. “My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone impacted by this horrific tragedy. While details are still emerging, I hope for the safety and well-being of the children, teachers and staff at Sandy Hook Elementary and for the Newtown community.”

The Associated Press is reporting 26 people, including 20 children, died in the shooting. The killer committed suicide at the school, and another person was found dead at a second scene, bringing the toll to 28, authorities said.

Connecticut’s two senators, Joe Lieberman and Richard Blumenthal, also spoke about the horrific incident.

“Senator’s and Hadassah’s prayers go out to all those affected by this tragedy today,” Lieberman spokeswoman Whitney Phillips wrote in an email. “What is important now is to give the first responders and local authorities the support needed to address the situation as it changes and keep the community of Newtown safe.”

Blumenthal tweeted: “My thoughts & prayers are with the Sandy Hook Elementary & #Newtown community on this tragic day. Hoping for safety of students & teachers.”

Gov. Dan Malloy’s Twitter account reported that the Democratic governor had spoken on the phone with President Barack Obama and that he was in Newtown, where counselors and crisis response staff are on the scene.

House Speaker John Boehner ordered flags at the Capitol to be flown at half-staff.

“The horror of this day seems so unbearable, but we will lock arms and unite as citizens, for that is how Americans rise above unspeakable evil,” Boehner said in a statement. “Let us all come together in God’s grace to pray for the families of the victims, that they may find some comfort and peace amid such suffering.”

But some politicians — mainly liberal Democrats from the Northeast — called for legislative action.

Rep. Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat, was perhaps the most prominent politician to demand action.

“Today is a day for mourning and prayer, but we must immediately get to work to end these senseless, mass killings of innocent Americans,” he said in a statement. “Together, we must act now to stop the carnage.”

New Jersey Sen. Frank Lautenberg, a long-time gun control advocate, backed President Barack Obama’s call to act regardless of political consequences.

“Americans are sick and tired of these attacks on our children and neighbors and they are sick and tired of nothing being done in Washington to stop the bloodshed,” he said in a statement. “If we do not take action to address gun violence, shooting tragedies like this will continue. As President Obama said, we must act now ‘regardless of the politics.’”

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who has dedicated a portion of his personal fortune to backing gun control supporters in elections, called for Obama and Congress to go beyond rhetoric.

We still know little but it seems very likely that assault weapons were involved if more than 100 shots were fired in a short period. Assault weapons are primarily designed for the mass slaughter of human beings. There are those who say that the value of having such weapons in private hands exceeds the harm. Let's vote on that. The Republican plan allows anyone over 18 that has not YET committed a felony or anyone who has not YET been declared formally insane to buy such weapons as often as they like. A sane decent plan would say no. With assault weapons you need to justify the ownership because too many of our children have died at the hands of assault weapons owners.

Let decency and common sense triumph over the ideology of the Republican Party.

Let's place the blame where it belongs: liberals and their pro-abortion extremism have devalued life for the last forty years. It's no coincidence that most of the mass killings in American history have occurred in the same forty year span. Stop the hate and we'll have some peace.

Yet another gun tragedy. Even more heartbreak and pain. Fear, paranoia and anxiety now more a part of our everyday lives. Yet, again, all we and politicians can do is ‘offer our prayers’. When will we begin to address this type outrage with reason, logic and common sense? When will we stop deferring our responsibility to some myth-based, friendly old man in the sky? We have been praying to various ‘gods’ around the world for centuries to stop wars, end violence, calm storms, relieve famine, cure illness and countless other fearsome challenges to all humanity. How has that worked out for us? Not well, I fear. Yet, we can still point to heavens and thank ‘god’ when our team scores a touchdown. How stupid are we?

Yet another gun tragedy. Even more heartbreak and pain. Fear, paranoia and anxiety now more a part of our everyday lives. Yet, again, all we and politicians can do is ‘offer our prayers’. When will we begin to address this type outrage with reason, logic and common sense? When will we stop deferring our responsibility to some myth-based, friendly old man in the sky? We have been praying to various ‘gods’ around the world for centuries to stop wars, end violence, calm storms, relieve famine, cure illness and countless other fearsome challenges to all humanity. How has that worked out for us? Not well, I fear. Yet, we can still point to heavens and thank ‘god’ when our team scores a touchdown. How stupid are we?

Let's place the blame where it belongs: liberals and their pro-abortion extremism have devalued life for the last forty years. It's no coincidence that most of the mass killings in American history have occurred in the same forty year span. Stop the hate and we'll have some peace.

Yet another gun tragedy. Even more heartbreak and pain. Fear, paranoia and anxiety now more a part of our everyday lives. Yet, again, all we and politicians can do is ‘offer our prayers’. When will we begin to address this type outrage with reason, logic and common sense? When will we stop deferring our responsibility to some myth-based, friendly old man in the sky? We have been praying to various ‘gods’ around the world for centuries to stop wars, end violence, calm storms, relieve famine, cure illness and countless other fearsome challenges to all humanity. How has that worked out for us? Not well, I fear. Yet, we can still point to heavens and thank ‘god’ when our team scores a touchdown. How stupid are we?

Yet another gun tragedy. Even more heartbreak and pain. Fear, paranoia and anxiety now more a part of our everyday lives. Yet, again, all we and politicians can do is ‘offer our prayers’. When will we begin to address this type outrage with reason, logic and common sense? When will we stop deferring our responsibility to some myth-based, friendly old man in the sky? We have been praying to various ‘gods’ around the world for centuries to stop wars, end violence, calm storms, relieve famine, cure illness and countless other fearsome challenges to all humanity. How has that worked out for us? Not well, I fear. Yet, we can still point to heavens and thank ‘god’ when our team scores a touchdown. How stupid are we?

" A free people ought not only to be armed and disciplined, but they should have sufficient arms and ammunition to maintain a status of independence from any who might attempt to abuse them, which would include their own government." George Washington - from Second Amendment University

Yet another gun tragedy. Even more heartbreak and pain. Fear, paranoia and anxiety now more a part of our everyday lives. Yet, again, all we and politicians can do is ‘offer our prayers’. When will we begin to address this type outrage with reason, logic and common sense? When will we stop deferring our responsibility to some myth-based, friendly old man in the sky? We have been praying to various ‘gods’ around the world for centuries to stop wars, end violence, calm storms, relieve famine, cure illness and countless other fearsome challenges to all humanity. How has that worked out for us? Not well, I fear. Yet, we can still point to heavens and thank ‘god’ when our team scores a touchdown.

Let's place the blame where it belongs: liberals and their pro-abortion extremism have devalued life for the last forty years. It's no coincidence that most of the mass killings in American history have occurred in the same forty year span. Stop the hate and we'll have some peace.

A free people ought not only to be armed and disciplined, but they should have sufficient arms and ammunition to maintain a status of independence from any who might attempt to abuse them, which would include their own government." George Washington - from Second Amendment University

The Washington administration's suppression of the Whiskey Rebellion met with widespread popular approval.[99] The episode demonstrated the new national government had the willingness and ability to suppress violent resistance to its laws. It was therefore viewed by the Washington administration as a success, a view that has generally been endorsed by historians.[100] The Washington administration and its supporters usually did not mention, however, that the whiskey excise remained difficult to collect, and that many westerners continued to refuse to pay the tax.[2